I caught Dr. Oral Roberts on TBN the other night with his eldest grandson, Jon Oral, preaching about seed time and harvest.

My husband Scott and I had the privilege of meeting Dr. Roberts when our firm handled his autobiography, Expect a Miracle. Accompanying him to Larry King, Good Morning America, and the other shows we secured gave us the opportunity to get to know him personally and his ministry intimately. Over the years, we’ve had the opportunity to stay in touch. We visited with him at his home in California not long ago. Seeing him on television and knowing him 14+ years reminded me of an important lesson: a genuine brand will stand the test of time.

Since the 1940’s, Dr. Roberts has consistently preached seed time and harvest. He preached it in his crusades, he preached it on television, he preached it at his University, he preached it in his books, he preached it in churches, he preached it at his home, and he preached it on TBN. Whether you like Dr. Roberts or not, whether you agree with his theology or not, doesn’t matter. Anyone familiar with him and his life message can tell you his brand: seed time and harvest – sow a seed, and you will reap a harvest.

When the test came against that brand, when people criticized him and ridiculed his theology, or came against the University and the way funds were handled, Oral didn’t change his brand. He didn’t waiver or soften his message. He strengthened it. He’s been preaching seed time and harvest for over 60 years and at the age of 91, it’s still going strong. On TBN, Dr. Robert’s grandson got up and preached about seed time and harvest. But Jon took the message (the brand) a step further by telling people to tie your seed and your harvest to your dream. So he took the brand of ORU and, without compromising the original brand or changing its core message, made it relevant for today.

One mistake we’ve seen clients make over the years is to constantly change their brand or message making it difficult for people to know who they are, what they do, or what they truly stand for. Some do this unknowingly. They don’t know who they are or know how to communicate who they are. Some just want to appeal to the masses so whatever is in “vogue” for that time is the message they take on. But this is a mistake. An important brand, a true brand that has merit, and is consistently communicated to the client’s partners and constituents, is the only kind that will endure. It’s good to ask yourself: will people know and still be talking about our brand 60 years from now?